Girls love to talk. We talk about everything and anything. We also love to share what’s happening in the lives of others–good and bad. We’ve all been there. We’ve all been gossip girls at one time or another.
In our world, we can share gossip around the globe within seconds, but what we sometimes forget within those same few seconds is this gossip can hurt and ruin a person’s life.
We’re often surprised to find out who’s gossiping about others or about us. It’s more surprising when we find out it’s one of our best friends. We all need to be reminded that we are called to uplift and encourage others when they fall, but often we do the opposite.
We throw salt on the wound, turn our backs on them, talk about their mistakes and walk away. Can you relate to be treated this way? Can you relate to treating others this way?
So how do we set the example for our daughters or granddaughters when we see that they’re gossiping about their friends or they are the topic of the hot story?
- Be a strong role model. Set an example for your daughter or granddaughter to follow and break the habit of gossiping about others. Think about others before you talk about them.
- Discourage gossip at the dinner table or in your home. Keep your conversations positive when talking about others. This will shut down gossip quickly.
- If your daughter has a blog, follow her. Read what she’s writing and if she blogs about people, encourage her to blog about their positive qualities.
- If she’s the source of the gossip, let her know that it will end. Encourage her not to feed into the gossip drama. If there isn’t a reaction from her, the gossip will diminish sooner than later. Block unknown text messages, phone numbers or emails from her cell phone that may cause her to react to the gossip.
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. (Ephesians 4:29, NIV)
We all love to talk, but let’s keep it positive and only what is helpful for building each other up instead of bringing others down.
